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Friday, August 6, 2010

If it makes you feel better...

I had a doctor's appointment recently and ended up (surprise, surprise) taking a tangent while talking to my nurse, or listening to her, I should say. I sat and listened, nodding when appropriate, while she explained the past couple of years of her life. At one point she started describing how important establishing her faith in god was to helping her, prefaced with a passing comment that she hoped it wouldn't offend me (without actually waiting to see if I had any objections). To be honest, it didn't offend me. She wasn't trying to convince me, she was just explaining (albeit completely inappropriate for the environment) about her life experiences to me. Who am I to be offended at what makes her feel better, so long as it isn't hurting anyone or anything else?

That's why I like Christopher Hitchen's (a vocal atheist) response to people praying for him (both for his demise and for his recovery). He knows it won't change his views, and it seems to make people feel better, so why get upset over it? The great thing about most of us is that we have the luxury of free time, and the freedom to choose what we want to do with that free time. Although we may disagree about what constitutes a good use of time, it can be said that one person's waste of time is another's treasure. So go on, spend your time however you see fit, so long as you aren't berating, abusing or neglecting people, animals or the environment (like my caveat!).

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M. Wilson Sayres is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.